Kensei: The Almighty Saint of Fists
by Lavenian
Summary: After a crushing defeat, Hana Asakura and his friends join a new mixed martial arts tournament to become stronger.
1. Chapter 1

**Kensei**

Disclaimer: Standard Disclaimer applies

"You were very persistent about coming along, aren't you?" Lowe asked.

"You've been leaving the house for a whole week now; don't I deserve the chance to come along?" Lowe's daughter, Lou said.

"Hehe, well, I suppose." Suddenly, their limousine screeched to a halt.

"Driver? What's wrong?" not sooner did Lowe ask that their driver suddenly pointed a gun at them, "Get out of the car, now!" said the driver with a sneer.

Lowe and Lou left the car. Suddenly, two cars arrived, also with men armed with guns.

"What is the meaning of this?" Lowe demanded.

The driver walked towards the father and daughter, and explained the situation, "sorry Mister Roux, you see, we've actually been hired by some of your employees, they say you've been workin' them up the wall, not a very good way to treat your workers, I'd bet."

"They'd never do that!" Lowe protested.

"Be quiet!" then all the men aimed at the Rouxes.

"Our contractors said we'd get a fair share of your fortune if we'd get rid of you, now, even though we haven't said much, you already know too many. You shouldn't take any of this personally, especially from us, it's just business."

"Daddy!" Lou hugged her father, as he tried to protect her fro the inevitable gunshots.

"Ho ho ho! What do we have here?"

"Huh?" Everyone suddenly turned their attention to an old, yet physically well-built, man, wearing a dull blue karate gi with the sleeves removed walking down from the bridge's large suspension cables.

"Who are you?" asked the hitman.

"Me? I'm just an old man taking a little nighttime stroll, and what are you guys doing with those things? Only the police ever carry around those around."

"Well, all right then. Unfortunately, sir, I'm afraid that the price for stumbling into this whole charade will have to be your death."

The old man looked at them with a puzzled look, "My death? I've never heard such a jest spoken to me in a while," then the man turned his back towards the assassins, "Go ahead, let's see if you can make my night."

"You asked for this. Boys! Take him down!"

"Aah!!" Lou closed her eyes as gunfire blazed, she didn't dare open them for fear of what she would expect, but when she did, it wasn't what she expected.

Lowe was also surprised, "How did he-?"

And so were the bewildered assassins, for after all the shots they fired, the old man turned about face, completely untouched by a single round from their firearms.

The old man then looked at the men with a grim expression, "You're really quite the lousy-shots, aren't you? Boys!"

Suddenly, a trio of blonde-haired boys jumped on top of one of the cars of the assassins, "Yes sifu?" they said in unison.

"Clean these guys' acts," he ordered.

"Yes, sifu," Then the boys immediately scattered into the crowd of gunmen.

One of them, wearing blue, moved quickly through the crowds, sailing and striking at their vulnerabilities as fast as a hummingbird's wing beats.

Another, dressed in red, didn't move as fast, but he grabbed one gunman by the leg and started swinging him around with a strength that defied his youthful appearance, and thrashed his way through his attackers.

"Eeeyaah!" Lou screamed as the leader of the attackers grabbed her and pointed his gun at her.

The last of the three, wearing white, approached the hitman.

"Don't come any closer kid!" then he pointed his gun at him.

"No need to be all paranoid mister," the kid said reassuringly.

"Don't! Stay away, get back!!" then he fired his gun, however, the moment he fired, the boy had already reached in close-quarters distance, and then he did a jumping uppercut which loosened the man's grip on Lou.

"And another!" then in midair, the boy did another uppercut that sent the man flying then landing back down with a thud, knocking him out.

"Daddy!" Lou returned to her father, and they embraced thankful that that harrowing experience was over.

They then called the police, and Lowe turned towards the old man.

"Thank you sir" said Lowe, looking at the old man.

"No need to worry. Be thankful that me and my pupils were around at the time."

Lowe turned to the boys, "Again, I can't thank you enough for helping me and my daughter."

"It's all right sir, we're just doin' our jobs," Said the boy who saved Lou.

"Thanks," said Lou.

Then Lowe realized something, "Oh right, we never even asked what your names are. My name is Lowe Roux, and this is my daughter, Lou."

The old man spoke, "My name is Sheng Long, and these are my three star pupils, and might I add, my only pupils so far."

Long presented his first, the one in blue, "This is Boomer, the fastest of the three, as you clearly saw; his movements make his appearance quite hazy."

"Yo," said Boomer.

Then Long presented the one in red, "And this is Jimmy Lee, one of my more boisterous students. He has the strength of ten men even though he's just a boy."

"Howdy do," Jimmy said.

"And last but not least, my rather personal favorite, Hana Asakura, he's got a lot going for him, with the will to win and a brazen spirit, he's quite the star," Sheng Long said rather proudly.

"Aw shucks" Hana just shrugged.

Lou approached Hana and grabbed his hands, "Thank you so much Hana, I'm forever indebted to you!" she said cheerfully.

"H-hey, no need to rub it in" Hana looked down bashfully, his partners just stifled a giggle.

Suddenly, police sirens could be heard, and Sheng Long turned back towards Lowe, "Well, then, I suppose this is where we part ways for now."

Lou faced Hana again, "I really wish there was something I could do for you…"

Hana just looked at her and replied, "I'm all right, you don't have to do anything."

Lou looked kinda sad, "But…"

Hana just placed a finger to her lips, "Shush, you'll think of something eventually, this isn't gonna be the last time we meet, I'm certain of that."

Lou silently nodded, then watched as Hana, his friends, and Sheng Long left her sight.

Years Later…

On the distant island of Okinawa, Boomer ran through the woods, with rocks tied on his arms, legs and on his back, yet even with all of these weights, he sprinted through the woods as fast as a deer. Soon he found himself heading into a sloped clearing, and headed further down.

Jimmy, on the other hand, was pounding of several boulders careening down from a waterfall, they all came down faster than a band of marching ants, but with just one punch on each one, the boulders broke into naught but pebbles as they fell into the water around him.

Boomer then jumped near a bank next to the small lake where Jimmy was training, and he started jogging in place, "Jim, where's Hana and the old man?"

Jimmy punched one last boulder to bits before replying, "Over there by the glade."

Hana, on the other hand, he was special, at least, as far as the rest of his friends were concerned. In a secluded glade in the deep jungle of Okinawa, Hana and Sheng Long were sparring, for as Sheng Long saw it, there was no better training than engaging one's self in a good spar, especially if you're opponent was your equal or even better.

Hana lunged forward with a punch, but Long blocked it and attempted to strike with an elbow, but Hana dodged and then attempted to swipe Long off his feet, but the latter somersaulted over this assault and was about to give a heavy hand-chop to his bold student until Hana quickly made for an uppercut, but quickly cut short as both master and student reached only inches away from hitting each other.

The two breathed deeply, staying in position, and then, it was over, "You've improved tremendously, Hana, you really are my best pupil."

Hana smiled and replied, "Thanks, sifu."

Long then assembled his students together near the lake, then had them line up side-by-side. He looked at how much Hana, Boomer and Jimmy had grown over the years, and now, he saw that they had become fine martial artists in their own right.

"You boys, when you were younger, you were as strong as many as 30 men, but after today, you look as though no man or beast could ever stand against you in this lifetime."

The boys stifled a chuckle, and then straightened themselves again.

"After this moment, I have nothing left to teach you, but know that I will always be at your side when you are in need of guidance." Then Long pulled out three tickets.

"These will take you back to your respective homes, do me proud in what you do boys." Long then clasped with his pupils and smiled proudly towards them, and then he turned and returned to his hermitage, bidding his pupils farewell for now.

Hana then turned to his two friends, who had been with him ever since their tutelage with Long began, "Well, this is it guys, I guess we'll be seein' each other again sometime?"

Jimmy softly punched his arm, "We're never far for long, that's what buddies do, buddy."

"But it will be great to see our families again after so long, don't you think?" Boomer asked.

Jimmy looked up into the sky, "Hehe, it'll be nice seeing my bro Billy again."

Boomer turned to Hana, "What are you gonna do Hana?"

Hana sighed, "Oh you know…"

Jimmy turned to him in realization, "Hey that's right, you and your parents are bodyguards now, aren't cha?"

Hana sighed, "Yeah…"

Boomer gave Hana a nudge, "Good luck with that."

Elsewhere, on Japan's mainland island Honshu, Lou waved to her adoring crowd as thousands of fans cheered on her.

Over the past couple of years, Lou had been building up her fame as a famous pop star, and now her labor was bearing fruit, for tonight was her first big gig and it went off with a bang.

After waving goodbye to her fans and admirers, Lou stepped onto her limousine parked in the back, and drove off to her penthouse apartment.

Once there, she greeted her father and the Asakuras, Yoh and Anna.

"How was your concert dear?" Lowe asked.

"It was great Dad, as always," Lou replied.

"That's great dear" Lowe rubbed his daughter's head proudly.

Lou turned to Anna and Yoh, "Oh, hello too, Mr. and Mrs. Asakura, have you heard anything from Hana?"

Anna just pointed behind her, "Ask him yourself."

Before Lou could respond, a pair of arms wrapped around her and soon enough, Hana was snuggling her.

"Missed me?" Hana said softly

"Hana!" Lou giggled as Hana continued snuggling her.

Hana and Lou then entered Lou's room, where Lou got them some iced tea, "So how was your final training Hana?"

Ana took a sip before replying, "You wouldn't believe how insane it was," he said in a way that showed he was very excited about it.

Then Lou asked, "What happened?"

Then Hana started talking about their training: Breaking boulders with their bare hands, running through all of Okinawa with rocks strapped all over their bodies, doing push-ups over hot incense sticks, balancing eggs on bamboo poles using all their fingers, noses and tongue, killing ten sharks in 20 minutes, meditating under a freezing cold waterfall while sitting on a block of ice wearing only their boxers and the list goes on…

"Oh my, that sounds intense!" Lou said surprised by the extreme conditions for their training.

"I know, but now look at me" Hana then unbuttoned his shirt and revealed his rock-hard muscular torso.

Lou then started feeling her way around Hana's chest, and it really felt hard, it was still kinda soft, but it was like Hana was made of rocks with a layer of skin over him.

"Wow, you're body has definitely improved," Lou said teasingly.

"Aye, but it's still nothing compared to your silky-smooth skin," Then Hana wrapped his arms around Lou, and snuggled her again, smelling her lavender hair, and caressing her sooth, soft skin, Lou tried to shove him away gently, but he had a firm yet gentle, grip on her, Lou giggled as Hana continued touching her.

Suddenly, Anna barged in, "Hana… oh."

"Mother!" Hana suddenly felt flustered by the intrusion.

"I'll leave you two alone first," then Anna left, leaving Hana red in the face, and Lou all giggly.

2 months later…

"Lou, I've bought some of that root beer," Hana entered Lou's room and saw her sifting through mail.

"Fan mail?" Hana asked.

"Yup, oh yeah, I also found this one mail here for you Hana." Lou then handed him a letter as she took a can of root beer to drink.

"A letter for me?" Hana looked puzzled.

"That's right, apparently, it's from one of your old sparring partners I think," Lou replied.

"Hm… I wonder what they're calling me for?" Hana opened and read the letter, apparently it was made by Boomer.

"What does it say?" Lou asked.

"It says here that Boomer wants me to come over to his hometown of Townsville in the US, says he wants me to come visit him for a little while."

"Oh, Townsville? You're friend comes from there?" Lou asked.

"Yeah, hm… I wonder why he wants me to visit him?" Hana wondered.

"Oh who cares? It's your best friend isn't it? You should go take up his offer," Lou said with a smile.

"But… what about you?" Hana asked.

"What do you think? I'm coming with you, you silly." Lou poked his arm softly.

"Wha-?"

So, within a couple of days, Hana and Lou left Japan and arrived at Townsville International Airport.

"Well, here we are," Hana looked around the terminal, and watched various American people walk about and doing their business.

"Hana?" A voice called out to Hana.

"That voice… Jimmy?!" Hana turned and saw a familiar face, Jimmy Lee.

"Hana it is you! How are you old pal?" Jimmy said cheerfully, then he noticed Lou, "Oh, this must be your girlfriend?"

Hana and Lou blushed, "Jimmy, I'm just her bodyguard, don't jump to conclusions now."

Jimmy just looked at him with a sly face, "Riiight…"

Lou extended her arm to shake with Jimmy, "Hello, nice to meet you again, Jimy."

Jimmy reached out and shook hands with her, "Hehe, it's been a while."

"A pleasure to meet you, again" Lou remembered the night when Hana, Jimmy, and Boomer saved her and her father from those assassins, she's been extremely grateful to them since.

"Anyway, what brings you here to the States, Jimmy?" Hana asked.

"Boomer gave me this letter here to come over and see him." Jimmy then produced a letter.

"Huh, I was asked to come here by a letter sent from him too." Hana then presented his letter as well.

"I wonder what Boomer is calling us over here for?" Hana asked.

"Beats me" Jimmy replied.

Lou then pointed to someone in the distance, "Hey guys, look!" There, running towards them, was Boomer, who immediately tackled Hana and Jimmy, "Hey Guys!"

The three boys got back on their feet and gave each other hearty laughs, before going over to Boomer's limo parked outside the Airport.

Once inside, Hana asked Boomer about the limo, "Wow Boomer, I never knew you could afford this stuff."

"Ah, me and my bros are practically loaded, but this isn't all we've got."

Then Jimmy asked, "What do you mean?"

"You'll see," Boomer replied.

After a few minutes of driving, the limo passed through a gate, and it drove into a narrow road surrounded by a large, forested area.

"Whoa, this is some garden…" Jimmy commented.

Boomer jokingly corrected him, "Jimmy, this is our front yard."

Jimmy seemed surprised, "No way!"

Boomer and Hana just gave a small chuckle.

Finally, the limo arrived in front of a large mansion and the four passengers exited out to be greeted by several maids and butlers.

"Boomer, you never told us you were some kind of tycoon!" Hana said, looking at the rows of servants lined before them.

"Actually, neither me nor my bros were as rich as this, you wouldn't believe that my dimwit of a brother, Butch, actually won the lottery a month ago, and we've been busy for a while." After ordering the servants to return to their duties, Boomer invited Jimmy, Hana and Lou into his mansion.

"It's like a palace in here." Jimmy complimented, taking in the splendor of his old friend's mansion.

Suddenly, a German shepherd came into view from the top of some stairs.

Hana noticed the animal, "Hey, I never knew you got a dog too, come here boy!"

The German shepherd, seeing Hana, made a mad dash for the boy, seemingly ready to attack him.

"Eek! Hana, watch out!" Lou shrieked.

The dog pounced on Hana, but rather than attack him, the dog licked him affectionately.

Boomer looked impressed, "Whoa, Hana, you really seem to have an affinity for dogs. Ol' Serb there has never been friendly with outsiders much."

Hana got back up after getting Serb to get off hi, "Yeah well, let's just say I have an affinity for animals."

Lou faced Hana and started hammering his chest, "Don't scare me like that, you oaf!"

Hana stroked her hair and kissed her on the forehead, "I'm sorry, Lou."

Boomer then brought them to the guest room, where they left their luggage, Boomer then brought them to the dining room, "You guys are probably hungry after your trip, why don't you have something of a snack while you're here?"

"Ok" Hana looked as several maids brought them several pastries, leftover chicken, and other goodies for them to eat.

Boomer spoke, "Oh yeah, tonight, Jimmy, Hana, I'm gonna take you someplace special."

"Where?" Hana asked?

"You'll find out eventually" Boomer replied.

"Can I come?" Lou asked.

Boomer replied, "Sorry, but, you can't come with us Miss Roux."

"Mou!" Lou pouted over the fact she couldn't come, Hana went over to try easing her, "Relax, I'll get you a souvenir if I can, ok?"

Lou still pouted, but acquiesced, "Ok, but it better be something cute!"

Hana nodded, "Sure."

Later that night, Hana, Jimmy and Boomer rode out on Boomer's Sports car into town, where they partook in the lights, sights, and other delights (Hey, that rhymed).

Jimmy took note of how the place looked while at night, "Wow, Townsville sure looks lively."

Boomer replied, "That isn't the half of it, especially when I take you there."

Both Jimmy and Hana were curious as to where Boomer was taking them.

After a few minutes of driving, Boomer parked his car next to a dark alleyway, then he had Jimmy and Hana follow after him into a secluded entrance nearby.

"Boomer, what's this about?" Hana asked.

"Patience Hana, wait until we're inside" Boomer knocked on the door, the bouncer inside peeked through the door, in which Boomer presented him with a couple of bills.

"Three please" asked Boomer.

The bouncer opened the door and let the three boys in.

"Boomer, is this place what I think it is?" Jimmy asked.

"Yup, it's an underground fighting arena."

"Why did you bring us here Boomer?" Hana asked.

"Well, after I learned of this place, I thought this was the perfect place to try out our skills in, besides, I think it's time we got some real opponents to fight against, don't you think? So c'mon, I say we give it a try."

Jimmy and Hana thought about it, and decided to give it a go.

Boomer went over to the receptionist and signed them in for some rounds.

Jimmy went up first, as he stepped into the ring, his first opponent was a rather tall, bald guy with scars all over his body.

"Let's see how he fares, Hana" Boomer said to Hana, taking their seats near the ring.

The tall guy charged for Jimmy, but he easily jumped and gave hi one good kick in the face, and the fight was over.

The crowd was stunned at how Jimmy easily devastated him, but they quickly went into loud cheering as Jimmy raised his arms in triumph.

Next was Boomer.

For his opponent, Boomer had to face off against some really fat biker thug with a mohawk, "What a dumb haircut."

The fat guy tried grappling Boomer, but the latter easily overwhelmed him with his outrageous speed, and Boomer knocked him down after a few blows to the head.

Next was Hana, and his opponent was a luchadore wearing a black crow-themed mask.

The luchadore moved around quite fast, and was almost overwhelming Hana.

"C'mon Hana, you can knock that maniac out!" Jimmy cheered.

Hana stayed his ground, then, when the luchadore attempted to sweep his feet off the ground, Hana quickly stomped his face, then punched him into the corner of the ring for a knock-out win.

And so the battles continued and the crowd started cheering for the boys, and now, it was coming to the final round.

"Who's the opponent for the final round?" asked Jimmy, since it was gonna be his turn next.

"Apparently, it's some guy who's been the undisputed champion around here for quite some time, He's called Biarce." Boomer replied.

Suddenly, puffs of smoke and ominous glowing lights gave way to the undisputed champion of this arena: Biarce, wearing only black shoes, black pants with black leather chaps, he walked forward with his dark, unkempt hair but his most distinguishing feature was his pure white skin, pale as the moon.

Hana looked at this new opponent, and for some reason, he felt as though the theatrics of his appearance was more than a shallow presentation of his arrival; Biarce was exuding an indescribable aura of immense power.

Jimmy prepared into his fighting stance, and looked at Biarce, his expression was a completely empty, cold one, his eyes transfixed in an unfeeling, callous stare.

"This guy, he's no ordinary fighter… it looks like I finally get a decent challenge." Jimmy stood still while Biarce simply kept looking at him.

After nearly a minute of standing still, the crowd demanded action, unable to wait any longer, Jimmy charged for Biarce.

No sooner had he charged did Biarce perform a powerful rising Genocide Cutter in Jimmy's face, sending the latter hurtling off stage and onto the bench where Hana and Boomer were sitting.

The crowd stood temporarily stunned as Biarce, as always, conquered his foe in less than two hits.

Hana and Boomer also stood stunned at how Biarce easily defeated Jimmy.

Boomer came up next, as he struck his fighting pose, he looked cautiously at Biarce, and readied himself for his attack.

Boomer then lashed out at Biarce, throwing a light punch, which Biarce dodged, then followed by a kick to his left, which he also blocked, then Boomer was about to jab his back, and Biarce quickly countered, blocking Boomer's attack and hitting Boomer with a mighty palm strike, before throwing him off-stage, and out of the ring.

Jimmy, Boomer, and now Hana, the crowd was eager to see if Hana could fare any better than his two friends.

However, the moment Hana stepped into the arena; Biarce looked at him with a genuine look of recognition.

"What?" Hana asked.

Biarce smiled, then pointed at Hana, and spoke for the first time since the battle against him began "You have a lot of skill, but you lack polish, I'll take you down in five hits." Biarce said boldly and assuredly.

Hana thought, "Who the hell is this guy?"

Hana decided to stay completely still, not wanting to risk being countered by Biarce, but the latter didn't see to want it, "Don't wanna move huh? Fine by me." Suddenly, Biarce disappered in a haze.

"What the?!" No sooner had Hana enough time to register as Biarce suddenly appeared right in front of him, Biarce then pummeled him with a powerful jab to his gut.

"One"

Then Biarce did a powerful high kick which sent Hana being dislodged from the ground.

"Two"

Followed by Biarce slamming both palms on the floor, causing the massive shockwave to send Hana flying into the air.

"Three"

Biarce then jumped up and did a karate chop on Hana, sending the latter flying downwards.

"Four"

Finally, Biarce descended down as quickly as possible and formed a pair of fists with his hands, connecting both hands by the thumbs, Biarce waited… then struck Hana, sending the blonde boy flying out of the arena and onto Boomer and Jimmy.

"Five…"

The crowd cheered wildly as Biarce, once again, conquered the arena, and left the three boys down a bloody mess.

However, Biarce helped Hana up, and commended him despite the fact Hana didn't even so much as throw a punch, "You got skill kid, but you need to become even stronger if you want to even stand a ghost of a chance against me…"

Hana, Boomer, and Jimmy left the arena, feeling utterly humiliated.

Except for Hana, who remembered Biarce's last words to him.

"Become even stronger…"

Morning came on the mansion, and the boys found themselves bound in bandages, having been pretty roughed up from the fight.

"Not even a finger on him huh?" Lou asked Hana.

"Yup, he totally roughed us up…" Hana replied.

Boomer sipped a cup of tea as he contemplated the night before, while Jimmy was exercising to try and get the painful sensation of that kick out of his body.

"I guess we're not as strong as we figured we'd be" Boomer said somewhat dejectedly.

"I suppose…" replied Hana, who stared out the window with Lou and Serb by his side.

"After that, I don't think I ever want another royal ass-kickin' from Biarce again" Jimmy said as he stretched his limbs.

Then Boomer looked at Hana as he contemplated by the window, "What's up, Hana?"

Hana simply replied, "We need to get stronger."

"What?"

Hana faced Boomer, "Biarce showed us that there are other fighters in the world other than us, and not only that, they are also stronger than us, why can't we become stronger too?"

Jimmy stopped his rounds and turned to Hana, "Yeah man, I've never seen someone fight like Biarce did, but the question is… how do we get stronger?"

The three boys contemplated over this, then, Lou provided them with the answer.

"The Saint of Fists Tournament!" Then she threw a newspaper with an article about a worldwide mixed martial arts tournament.

Boomer looked at the article curiously, "Saint of Fists?"

"Exactly!" Lou added, "It's been buzzing around lately, some filthy-rich tycoon decided to make a massive martial arts show and to add to the fun, people from all over the world are gonna fight in it, all around the world too."

Hana looked at the article and read what little info it had about the tournament, "This looks interesting, says here, the preliminaries are already underway in Bangkok."

Hana, Boomer and Jimmy looked at each other with grins on their faces, then Boomer spoke, "All right, once we're up and at 'em let's go join this 'Saint of Fists' tournament!"

Jimmy jogged excitedly, "We'll become stronger than anything the world's ever seen!"

Lou turned to Hana, "Everybody looks pumped… what about you?"

Hana turned to her with a smile, "I'll still come out as the strongest, you can count on that."

Lou then stood up, "Well then, it's decided!"

Later…

Hana, Boomer and Jimmy then boarded the next plane flying for Bangkok, Lou decided to stay behind because of certain "business" she had to do, but assured Hana that she'll be at Bangkok as well.

Hana looked outside the window of the plane, and watched as the sun rose above the puffy white clouds.

It was the dawn of a new journey…

END

(Author's Note: This story's going to be a oneshot, but if I get good reviews, I might consider going further with this, just tell me ok?)


	2. Chapter 2

**Kensei**

Disclaimer: Standard Disclaimer applies

Hana, Boomer and Jimmy arrived in Bangkok, Thailand, the three boys waited at the terminal lobby while Boomer got them a ride to go for the nearest hotel.

Jimmy bought some snacks back for himself and for the guys just as Boomer came back after a while.

"So Boomer, did you find a ride?" Hana asked while getting a donut out of the food pack Jimmy bought.

"Kinda, there was a guy who said he worked for the organizer of the Saint of Fists tournament, and he's sending us a chauffeur to take us to our lodgings." Boomer replied.

Just then, a tall, wiry man approached the boys "Are you one of the Saint of Fists participating teams?" he asked.

"Yes, we are." Boomer replied.

"Please come this way sirs," the chauffeur directed them to a nearby limousine, and the boys seated themselves in as the man got to the driver's seat and brought the vehicle to life, driving through the streets of Bangkok.

"So this is Thailand, huh?" said Hana, looking out across the street.

"Yup, home of unique flavors, and birthplace of Muay Thai." Boomer remarked.

Jimmy then spoke up, "That reminds me, who are our opponents, if they're identities are already announced?"

The chauffeur answered them, "There's a catalogue there, showing all the competing teams who will fight in the tournament."

Boomer picked up the catalogue and started browsing through pages.

"So many teams…" he remarked.

"Only those who pass the preliminaries are allowed to proceed, about 5 of them have already been removed," said the chauffeur.

"The competition sounds fierce." Jimmy said, regarding the participants.

The boys sifted through the pages, looking over their competitors.

Teams included the ACES Team, the Red Alert Team, the Ninja Three Team, the American Street Fighters Team, the Women Grapplers Team, the Punch Team, and many more too numerous to count, but for now, not all of them were to be their opponents.

One however, caught their eye, "Hey guys, check this out!" Boomer exclaimed.

"What, what is it?" Hana asked.

"Check out this team, 'The Men.'" Boomer pointed to one team comprised of none other than Tao Men, Hana's rival, Butch, Boomer's physically-inclined brother, and Duke, an old friend and enemy of Jimmy.

"Never saw that one coming," Jimmy remarked.

"The fact that they'll be in the tournament actually makes this even bigger than we think." Hana remarked.

"Yep…" said Boomer.

Meanwhile…

"Men, it's your turn now," Ren called for his son, who approached his father, waiting by a hall in the woods.

"Where are my teammates?" Men asked bluntly.

"They're waiting for you inside," Ren pointed to an open door leading into the hall.

"We'll come out when we're done, father." Men took a white headband and wrapped it on his head, and then proceeded inside the chamber.

Just then, a young girl with silver hair and flame-red eyes came into view, "Hello Ren, it's been some time."

Ren addressed to her, "Tianzi, what a pleasant surprise, Your Highness."

Tianzi stifled a laugh, "Can the formalities Ren, where is your son?"

Ren pointed to the hall, which was echoing with the sound of battle, "He's in there, getting ready for his entry into the Saint of Fists tournament."

"I see, will he be all right?" The sound of the battle suddenly silenced, and the doors flung open.

Out of the door came three young boys, one was a black-haired youth, who breathed in deep and then gave a loud shout to the heavens.

Another, red-haired boy who did stretches as he emerged, and finally, Men, who simply strode out casually, untying the headband from his cranium.

Ren looked inside the hall, and saw several of the family's best warriors, all lying on the ground, defeated and exhausted.

"Well done Men, you're definitely ready now," Men, however, was more focused on Tianzi's arrival, he tried to stop a blush from forming on his cheeks, Tianzi bore the proud distinction of being the only girl to ever invoke such a flustered feeling in Men like that.

"Men!" Butch suddenly bumped his torso into Men, and Men fell face-first into the dirt.

Tianzi chuckled slightly at this, she knows Men can be something of a stuck-up, but she wished he would lighten up a little, for her at least.

"Butch!" Men started berating his rowdy cohort, but Butch largely ignored him while he picked his nose.

Tianzi calmed down from this funny sight and spoke to Men, "Men, I have a little something for you," she then produced a black gift-box and offered it to him.

Men turned towards the gift-box, "What is it?"

Tianzi gestured him inside his mansion, "Why don't you open and wear it?"

Men took the box and stepped inside his mansion, afterwards he emerged, wearing a new set of snazzy clothes Tianzi had custom-made for him.

"What do you think?" she asked, hoping for a positive response.

Men looked over his clothes again; it was a skin-tight, flexible attire which was surprisingly mobile, but Men still felt uncomfortable with it for some reason.

He decided to omit the fact of his slight discomfort to her, "It's really something Tianzi, you've really outdone yourself with this, I'm impressed."

Tianzi smiled her smile that could shatter the spirit, "Really? Thank you Men, I made sure it was to your liking as much as possible."

Ren broke this happy scene thereafter, "Without further ado, Men, I believe it's time you left for Bangkok, by now, our private Jet is waiting to take you there."

En turned to his father, "Yes father, we'll be on our way," then he turned back to Tianzi, "Forgive me, but we really must be going now Tianzi, though I'd hate to depart from you like this."

Tianzi shook her head, "No Men, I know what you're trying to achieve, just keep your chin up and know that I'll always be around rooting for you."

Men was glad, "Thank you, wish me luck."

Elsewhere…

"We're going to have an exhibition match?" Jimmy asked.

Boomer nodded, "It's a little something to keep the crowd entertained while the preliminaries are getting finalized, until then, we gotta put up a nice show."

"And we're going to be the ones to do it? And who shall we fight against?" Hana asked.

"It's gonna be a one-on-one match for now, when we get to the prelims, that's when we get to fight with the real rules. Anyway, our opponent is one guy from the Muay Thai Team," Boomer tossed the brochure with the page of the Muay Thai Team on it.

Its members were Bruce Irvin, Joe Higashi, and Sagat, "So, we have to fight one of these guys for the exhibition match?"

Boomer nodded, Jimmy took up the brochure and asked, "Mind if I go for it?"

"Well, sure, it's the team who decides who will fight who in these rounds," Boomer replied.

"Neat, I always wanted to see Muay Thai personally, guess now's my chance!" Jimmy exclaimed excitedly.

Later, at the battle ring where the exhibition match was to be held, numerous people by the hundreds were flocking to see the fight, and several more were watching all around the world.

"Never thought there'd be a lot of people," Jimmy peeked out from behind and door and looked at the crowd which gathered there.

Boomer shook his head, "Well, it is a pretty big event after all, just be prepared."

Jimmy eyed around the stadium, and saw the Muay Thai Team on the other side of the ring; all of them looked pretty buff, the tallest guy among them however, was Sagat, Jimmy felt no doubt he was the leader of them all.

Jimmy studied Sagat with acute examination, "He looks intense, but hopefully worth it to see him in action."

The announcer stepped up and exclaimed loudly towards the crowd.

"Welcome, ladies and gentlemen, to the Saint of Fists Exhibition match, I know you all are anxious to see the preliminaries going again, but for now, please make do with our current match-up!" The announcer stepped down as Jimmy stepped down, as well as his opponent, which was none other than the leader of the Muay Thai Team: Sagat.

The announcer spoke again, introducing the combatants, "Introducing, from the Muay Thai Team, Sagat!" Sagat jumped into the ring and did some motions with his style as his intro.

Then the announcer turned to Jimmy, "And representing the Kenshi Team, Jimmy Lee!" Jimmy likewise jumped on stage and waved a little bit to the crowd before returning his attention to Sagat.

The announcer made one last statement before beginning the fight, "All right pugilists, listen up, this is but an exhibition match only, I don't care if you take it seriously or not, just give the viewers out there a good match to savor until the actual prelims."

Jimmy and Sagat locked sight with each other for a moment, and then assumed fighting stance with their bodies.

Sagat made the first move, and rushed for Jimmy with his fist, Jimmy dodged the incoming blow, only for Sagat to use one of his legs to kick Jimmy with, Jimmy blocks this attack with his arms, but he only barely manages to absorb the impact of the strike on his person, Jimmy attempted to retaliate with a kick to Sagat's abdomen, and Sagat visibly recoils from this assault, but recovers enough to deliver a kick against Jimmy's head.

Jimmy is thrown to the ground but flips back and out of Sagat's range, Sagat quickly intercepts Jimmy again, the latter jumps and delivers a kick to Sagat's chin, then shoulder tackles Sagat in the chest. Sagat is not fazed by this and delivers a powerful knee-kick into Jimmy, who winces from the impact. Sagat performs another one and sends Jimmy flying back-first into the canvas of the arena.

Sagat stood a good distance away, suddenly, Jimmy stirred up and lifted his body from the ground, although only barely, the announcer quickly responded, "Well folks that was a pretty good match but for now we can't extend this any longer, so after this, the match is now over! But don't fret too much, fighting fans, we'll have it more intense when we get down and serious!"

Later, Jimmy and the boys returned to their abode, with Jimmy feeling a bit down due to his loss.

Hana tried to cheer him up, "Relax Jimmy, we all have our ups and downs at certain points in life."

Jimmy raised his head to face Hana, "I know that, but, well, you know, some guys take it better than others."

Boomer simply shrugged at Jimmy's recalcitrance to get over his defeat.

Jimmy stood up, and calmly walked out of the door.

"I'm going for a little practice, catch ya later."

Jimmy traveled into the deep woods of Thailand surrounding their lodgings, and breathed deeply at the surrounding green, inhaling and exhaling a sort of breath exercise to calm his nerves, it seemed to work well for him.

Jimmy sighed; he felt as though he'd been out of practice for a while, so he decided to restart his training and journeyed deeper into the woods, arriving at a stone cliff with a large boulder by the base of the cliff.

"This should do," Jimmy assumed a fighting pose and faced the boulder, and then, with all the force he could muster, Jimmy punched the boulder, and all he could do was cause a medium-sized crater to form on its surface.

"Yup, I've been out of practice for a while," Jimmy remarked, he knew he could do better than this.

Later…

Boomer found Jimmy by the Cliffside, breaking large stones with his head, slamming them across his scalp and splitting them in two without breaking a sweat.

Boomer, although knowing that this was serious training, was partially amused, "I always thought it looked somewhat awkward, slamming whole stones like that with one's skull."

Jimmy had taken notice of Boomer's presence, and acknowledged him, "It's for the body man, I need to iron my physique back into tip-top shape before the prelims, especially if we face the Muay Thai Team again."

Boomer nodded, "In all honesty Jim, it looks like we are. I had a little chat with some of the sponsors, and it looks like we're going against Sagat and his guys for the first match."

Jimmy slammed another stone over his head before replying, "I see… I'll meet you guys later then, after I'm through with this."

Boomer was about to return to their lodgings, when Jimmy asked him abruptly, "By the way, where's Hana?"

Boomer turned his head and replied, "He's elsewhere, training too."

Hana had decided to take a trip towards the sea; he went underneath a cliff and stood atop an outcropping of rock. He looked towards the sea, and listened intently at the sound of the waves splashing against his platform of stone.

Hana recalled a technique Sheng Long had once shown him, a technique which he became partially familiar with, but difficult to master.

Flashback…

Hana turned towards Sheng Long intently, "An optional technique, sifu?"

Sheng Long turned to face him, "Yes, it is among the most potent techniques in my fighting arts' repertoire, many have attempted, but few ever came close, hence, it is optional for you in any case."

Hana boldly proclaimed towards his master, "There's nothing I can't do, let's see if that technique is really all that!" Hana cupped his hands towards his waist, and for one fleeting moment, Sheng Long felt a small, fleeting distortion emanate from Hana's hands, Hana noticed his confused look, "Sifu?"

Long collected himself before speaking, "Well, if you really think so, Hana, then I suppose I could expound this technique upon you."

End flashback…

Hana breathed in deeply, and assumed fighting stance, he continued breathing in a rhythmic fashion, calming his body and his mind, focusing them, on this one moment.

Hana then stretched his arms, his right was extended diagonally upwards, and his left diagonally downwards, away from his body. After a brief pause Hana began moving them in a circular fashion, both hands motioning towards each other, and, then leaving to draw that circular motion again.

As Hana performed this, he felt the world slowly disappearing from his senses, and a minute feeling of distortion began to flow and ebb around and within his being, he could feel an indescribable essence flowing in perfect synchronization around him, the feeling, as far as Hana could place it, was both repulsively pressuring, and at the same time, harmoniously comforting.

Hana quickly snapped out of his trance as a force of power suddenly filled his gut, and abruptly, everything returned to normal, Hana breathed hard afterwards, pondering that sensation, "What was that?"

Next Day…

The preliminaries had begun, and soon all the contestants assembled at the arena for the showdown.

Jimmy felt much more confident in himself after yesterday's little training regimen, Hana, on the other hand, was still lost in thought.

Boomer noticed this, "Hana? Is everything ok?"

Hana nodded, "Yeah, I'm cool."

The PA system announced the first combatants, "Attention, Kenshi and Muay Thai Teams, come to the arena immediately."

Hana, Boomer and Jimmy rose from their benches, and headed off to the arena.

The announcer declared loudly over his table, "Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the final round of the preliminary matches, once this is over, the winning teams get to move on to the real deal in the tournament proper, so without further ado, let the games BEGIN!"

The Kenshi Team emerged from their corner first, "In one side, featuring an all-boy blonde team, the Kenshi Team!"

Then came their opponents for today's match, "And in this side, featuring the uber-muscular heroes of kickboxing, the Muay Thai Team!"

The crowd cheered wildly, eager for the match to begin, the announcer continued with a short monologue of who fights who, "Okay, combatant, you know the rules, first team to score best two out of three wins, now, let's begin round 1, shall we?"

First up was Boomer against Joe Higashi, both combatants stepped into the arena. Boomer looked at his opponent, Joe looked to be the smallest of the Muay Thai fighters, but still quite muscular.

The bell rung and Joe assumed fighting stance, Boomer did as well. Joe however, was the first to rush towards him, moving quickly to close the distance and almost delivered an uppercut to Boomer, who dodged the move, and replied with a jab with his left hand, Joe blocked the move and was about to strike at Boomer with his knee, shouting the name of his attack, "Tiger Kick!" Boomer also smoothly evaded the maneuver, then responded with a swift kick that made Joe lose his footing and landed on the ground.

Boomer dropped his heel over Joe, who also blocked the attack, and threw Boomer off, also landing on his backside.

The two combatants rose back to their feet and resumed their attack against each other, Boomer leaped and kicked Joe by the cheek, and then again with a jab to his stomach, and two more kicks into his gut, Higashi backed away, reeling from the pain, Boomer rushed in, keeping up his attack, but Joe quickly recovered and then rushed to meet Boomer with an uppercut, Boomer blocked as soon as he saw this, but his timing was slightly off and Joe broke through his defense, Boomer was wide open and Joe quickly executed a flurry of punches at Boomer, bellowing his war cry, "Ora ora ora!"

Boomer was beaten black and blue, and the last hit sent Boomer flying towards the edge of the arena, down, and most likely out.

Boomer laid on his back for a while, but as he tried to get up, the announcer quickly put an end to the tussle, "It looks like a knock-out! What a way to start a tournament, that's one victory point for the Muay Thai Team!"

The crowd cheered as Joe started cackling like a maniac over his victory, Hana and Jimmy had to get Boomer out of the arena.

The announcer announced for the second round, "There goes the first round, it's time for the next competitors to go!"

For this next round, Bruce decided to go for it for his team, Jimmy, adamant about fighting Sagat again, let Hana have this round.

Bruce stretched and exercised his body a bit before beginning the fight. Hana entered in pretty much the same way, but that power he had absorbed the day before lingered in the pit of his stomach, but he felt strangely empowered by its presence, and Hana felt as though he were stronger than 50 of the world's best fighters.

The bell sounded and Bruce, wasting no time, and delivered a powerful knee kick to Hana, the latter quickly jumped over the attack and delivered his own knee-kick to Bruce's face, and then pummeled him with his thigh to Bruce's neck, Hana quickly jumped out of the way, giving Bruce a moment to recover.

Bruce rose to his feet, looking vindictively at Hana, he assumed proper fighting position and so did Hana. The two fighters remained firm for a time, locking eyes and preparing to get lethal, suddenly, Bruce spoke, "For a kid, you know how to fight, let's give the crowd a good one shall we?"

Hana remained mostly silent, the power welling in his body was making him feel more agitated, and he had to keep it within his control.

Bruce resumed the fight moving towards Hana and extending his foot to kick him, Hana mitigated the blow with a block, Bruce continued with powerful kicks, putting pressure against Hana's arm, Hana kept up his defense, not letting Bruce have his way with him.

Bruce, having had enough of playing around, was about to deliver one last, finishing blow, but at that moment, Hana countered, ducking from his kick and sweep-kicking him off the floor, then delivering a heel drop to send him into the ground.

Bruce didn't give up his assault just yet, and jumped back to his fight, kneeing Hana with a barrage of strikes and putting him again on the offensive. Hana maintained his position again, skillfully blocking Bruce's assault against him, Bruce attempted one last strike with his arm to Hana's head.

Hana caught Bruce's arm and, while holding it in a deadlock, started kicking several times into Bruce's abdomen. Bruce finally gave way to the attacks and fell to his knees, Hana felt the surge of power in his body, and with all he could muster, gathered them to his foot, and delivered one last massive kick in Bruce's face, sending the Muay Thai fighter flying and landing with a loud thud against the floor.

It was a knockout, and the Kenshi Team earned their first victory point, and now it was time to break the tie with the third round.

Jimmy tensed his body, and rose onto the stage, visibly cautious. His opponent, Sagat, on the other hand, calmly walked on stage, his ominous and imposing presence drawing in oohs and aahs from the audience.

Jimmy didn't even wait for the bell to ring and he quickly drew his stance, Sagat didn't yet and instead stood there, before speaking, "Boy, you do realize that you may lose and everything you've sought might abruptly come to an end, do you really want to risk this, as I am risking myself?"

Jimmy seemed perplexed by this answer, "Why are you asking that?"

Sagat responded, "I had lost a lot in the past, and in this place I seek to regain that which was lost, what I state is if you are willing to lose everything now, and not regret it later."

Jimmy seemed impress by this, and responded casually, "Whatever will be, will be… but let's not expect that to stay the same."

Sagat was likewise impressed, "Very well then," The bell rung and the fight began, "No more talk, now is the time for action!"

Jimmy and Sagat rushed for each other, throwing some blows at each other, evenly striking one another, and dodging them skillfully as well.

As Boomer watched on, he could sense the excitement in Jimmy, this was definitely a fight that his friend had been waiting for.

Hana shared his sentiment, "Jimmy's been itching for something like this huh?"

Boomer turned to him, "He certainly is, you can feel how invigorated he is from right here."

Hana nodded, "Agreed."

Jimmy continuously performed somersault kicks to Sagat's face, before the latter recovered and grabbed Jimmy in a bear hug, Sagat pounded his abdomen until a trickle of blood poured a little from Jimmy.

Jimmy banged his hands against Sagat's head, forcing the Muay Thai fighter to let go of Jimmy after that blow, Jimmy then started kicking Sagat in the abdomen, and then followed by some jabs.

Sagat grabbed hold of Jimmy's leg after another kick, and then delivered another kick to Jimmy's temples and the young fighter was thrown to the ground, Jimmy flipped back to his feet, only to meet Sagat's fist to his face as the Muay Thai fighter continued his pummeling of him. Jimmy then jumped up using Sagat's shoulders and slammed his forehead against Sagat's skull.

The battle dragged on, and it was growing intense, the crowd felt more agitated and began cheering louder and louder, even the announcer was getting caught in the intensity, "Fighting fans! This fight has gone on for almost an hour now, and still no real signs of letting up, I feel my blood rising from the heat this battle must be bringing, wow!"

After a while, both Jimmy and Sagat fell to their knees, nearly exhausted from their massive battle.

Jimmy laughed a little, "This is the most fun I've had for a really, really long while!"

Sagat nodded, "Yes, I feel a great vigor overwhelming my senses, it truly has been worth it to have been able to fight with you!"

Both combatants stood up, and posed once again to resume the battle, no words were exchanged, only the certainty that this battle was beginning to draw to a close very soon, both combatants could anticipate it.

Jimmy closed his eyes for a brief moment, allowing his mind a chance to recuperate from the excitement, he concentrated intently, relaxing his breathing, and putting his mind to focus again, this would be the last strike, and he needed to place all his power into this last moment.

Suddenly, Jimmy too felt the spurt of power burst inside of him, it felt smaller than what Hana felt, but he felt a renewed strength growing inside him, and Jimmy awakened at the right moment, for his final attack.

Both combatants suddenly sprinted with all their leg power, straight for each other. Jimmy leaped and extended one leg for a kick to the face, Sagat extended his while still on the ground and both combatants collided into each other, obliterating themselves in a clash of wills.

Jimmy and Sagat landed hard on the floor of the arena, both out of breath and utterly exhausted fro their fight.

The announcer looked keenly at the two combatants lying on the floor, standing from his seat and awaiting excitedly for who the victor was, "Oh my goodness people! Is this a double KO?"

It would not be the case however, as Jimmy rose from his prone position, standing up weakly, but determinedly, upon his two legs.

The announcer spoke again, "Another victory for the Kenshi Team! And we all know what this means, viewers! They're going to the tournament to see which team are the Saints of Fist!"

Jimmy slowly walked away from the arena, and approached Hana and Boomer, "I did it guys…. Hehe."

The Kenshi Team walked back towards the lounge, but was suddenly confronted by Sagat and his team.

Sagat approached Jimmy, "You have the flame of a true fighter, a true warrior, burning in you Jimmy, I had come here to personally thank you for that fight, I've never quite experienced anything like it in years."

Jimmy smiled and reached his hand out to shake, "Likewise, you gave me a real wake-up call there, if I had gotten into the tournament as I was now, I probably would've bit the dust."

Sagat reached out and shook Jimmy's hand, both combatants pleased with their efforts, "Good luck out there boy, I'm sure you'll face fighters as tough as me out there."

As the Muay Thai Team left their view, Jimmy gripped his head, "Uh… I'm gonna get a drink, why don't you guys check out the other fighters?"

Taking his word for it, Boomer and Hana came to the spectator seats to see who would be their adversaries for the rest of the Tournament.

To their surprise, the next line of combatants to step up was none other than the team of Men: The Men Team.

From the look of things, the battle was already over, Butch had struck down his opponent, a blonde kid who went by "Killer Bee" giving no quarter to him.

Duke stopped Butch before he went overboard, "That's enough Butch, we got what we need."

Bee's girlfriend, who was on his team, rushed and helped him out of the arena, "Are you ok Bee?"

Just then, a familiar voice rang clearly to him, "Hana? Hana!"

Hana turned around and saw Lou rushing up to him, jumping into his arms, "Hana, you're here! I've been looking around all over!"

Hana had her let go before he could speak, "Well, here I am now," Hana then noticed Lou carrying a wooden sword, "Hm, what's that you have there?"

Lou noticed him gesturing to her sword, "Oh this? I'm joining the Tournament, silly!"

Hana looked shocked, "Huh!? But… why?"

Lou responded casually, "I'd figure it's the best way to stay close with each other, and I've been meaning to practice my own little fighting style, pretty cool huh?"

Hana was visibly exasperated, "But… Lou…"

Lou didn't have time to chat, as it was her turn to fight next, "Oh, it's my turn already, wait for me Hana."

Hana gripped his head in gloom, "Lou… what will you fans think of me if I beat you up?"

Hana could imagine hordes of Lou's fans bashing him for it already, it didn't help…

Lou emerged towards the arena, followed by two other girls, and Boomer recognized one of them.

"Bubbles?" Lou pointed to where Hana and Boomer stood and Bubbles waved for Boomer, likewise, he waved back.

Jimmy had finally caught up with the other boys, "Hey guys, what's up?" Jimmy looked down at the arena, and saw Lou, along with Bubbles and Marian, "Marian?"

Hana turned to Jimmy, "That's your brother's girl, isn't she? What's she doing with Lou and Bubbles?"

Jimmy leaned on the railing with an uninterested look, "Billy probably wants to keep tabs on me, so he sent her I guess."

Meanwhile…

Sagat and his team were about to return to their rooms, when suddenly, a valet approached them, "Excuse me, kind sirs, you're wanted someplace."

Sagat looked at hi curiously, "Whatever for?"

"Just please follow me," Sagat and his teammates didn't know what was going on, but he followed him anyway.

The valet pointed to a seemingly empty room with only a few chairs, the team sat down in the rather conspicuous room.

The valet left but turned back to address them, "I will return shortly."

Joe seemed confused, "What do you think is going on?"

Bruce shrugged, "Don't have a clue."

Suddenly, the room started to fill up with gas.

The three men rose up in alarm, "What the hell-?!"

Sagat ran towards the door, but it was locked, he tried kicking against it, but it was no use.

Joe tried screaming to see if anyone could hear them, "LET US OUT! LET US OUT!"

In the end, they fell unconscious. Soon thereafter, the valet and several men in strange clothes arrived and took the unconscious fighters to who-knows-where.

Elsewhere…

The preliminaries were thereafter finished, and the announcer stood up on the arena, proudly declaring the official beginning of the tournament as the teams who would participate in it assembled behind him.

"Ladies and gentlemen! The moment you've all been waiting for! These teams have officially been chosen to lead you all on an exciting romp of mayhem! When all of this is over, there can only be one team, to be blessed with the title of 'Saint of Fist'!"

The crowd cheered wildly at the teams impressively presented for them, but as for Hana, he only knew that this meant the single certainty that the REAL challenge was about to begin.

And unbeknownst to the fighters, an ominous shadow of malice loomed over their heads, silently, but intently, gazing upon them like a predator to the prey…


End file.
